Why Do We Start Conferences With General Sessions? April 2, 2012 by Jeff Hurt Most conferences kickoff with an opening general session. Why? What’s the point? What’s the purpose of a general session? Back To Presentation Basics What’ the purpose of a speaker for any presentation? Nancy Duarte, author of Resonate says it best, Presentations are most commonly delivered to persuade an audience to change their minds or behavior. … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Education, Experience Design Tagged With: , conference best practices, conference education, conferences, general sessions, meeting planning best practices, speaker, Speaker Emerging Practices
Leveraging Professional Speakers For Conference Impact March 15, 2012 by Dave Lutz Most conference expense budgets are tight and limiting. Technology innovations, including Skype, Snagit, DIY screen capture and affordable video editing tools, can help you bring more thought leaders to your conference experience. Increasing Conference Value With Professional Speakers Professional speakers are often the most remembered, valued and polished elements of a conference. Typically they are … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Education, Experience Design, Speaker Coaching Tagged With: , conference best practices, conferences, presentation best practices, professional speakers, speaker, Speaker Emerging Practices
Things I Despise About Speaker Marketing Videos February 17, 2012 by Jeff Hurt You’ve probably heard the saying, “If you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all.” In the case of the majority of speaker marketing videos, it’s true! According to research by VCC and Tagoras, meeting professionals consider the speaker marketing video the most important sales tool available. More than a book, social media presence, blog or one … [Read more…] Filed Under: Speaker Coaching Tagged With: , master presenters, presenter, professional speakers, Speaker Emerging Practices, speaker tips
Fostering Hot And Spicy Audiences November 18, 2011 by Jeff Hurt Imagine for a moment that you’re preparing for a presentation for an upcoming conference. Close your eyes and visualize that your audience appears to be actually sizzling in their seats with enthusiasm. They are on fire for your words. Creating Audience Combustible Motivation Now imagine you have that same experience every time you present. This … [Read more…] Filed Under: Speaker Coaching Tagged With: , conferences, presentation best practices, presentation strategies, presenter, professional speakers, speaker, Speaker Emerging Practices, speaker tips
Conference Organizers Top 15 Professional Speaker Pet Peeves November 17, 2011 by Jeff Hurt Recently, Velvet Chainsaw partnered with Tagoras, Inc., a leading continuing education company, to survey conference professionals about their use of speakers. One question asked respondents to share their biggest pet peeves regarding professional speakers. 15 Guaranteed Ways Speakers Destroy Their Marketing Strategy Here are their top 15 most disliked pet peeves about professional speakers. 1. … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Education Tagged With: , conferences, presenter, professional speakers, speaker, Speaker Emerging Practices, speaker tips
Three Infographics On Conference Content And Delivery August 31, 2011 by Jeff Hurt Dare to color outside the lines. Have the courage to take risks. Let go of outdated, dead sacred cows. These were just a few of the overarching themes from Experient’s e4 2011 Conference “Outside the Lines.” Bye, Bye Breakouts! Hello Innovation Labs! The Experient team always delivers a stellar conference that’s engaging. They are willing to … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Education, Speaker Coaching Tagged With: , committee best practices, conference best practices, conference tips, conferences, content, content strategist, content-strategist-curator, meeting best practices, meeting planning, meeting planning best practices, Speaker Emerging Practices
The Next Big Conference Job Of The Future: Conference Content-Curator-Strategist August 19, 2011 by Jeff Hurt Most organizations receive hundreds of emails and phone calls asking about their speaker call for proposals. In one of my past jobs, we received 30-50 inquiries a month from professional speakers trying to land a speaking gig. And we were flooded with industry speaker requests as well. We hated those inquires. They were like speaker … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , association best practices, conference best practices, content-strategist-curator, meeting best practices, meeting experience, meeting industry trends, Speaker Emerging Practices
Dying, Boundary And Emerging Meeting Practices: Barbecuing The Sacred Cow August 18, 2011 by Jeff Hurt Does your organization have any meeting planning practices that are sacred cows? Don’t you wish you could grind them up for a barbecue? Well, it’s time to kill those traditions and make way for new, emerging ideas. e4 2011 Innovation Labs Recently I attended Experient’s e4 2011 conference, “Outside the Lines” as one of their … [Read more…] Filed Under: Experience Design Tagged With: , association best practices, conference best practices, content-strategist-curator, meeting best practices, meeting experience, meeting industry trends, Speaker Emerging Practices
6 New Meeting Trends To Watch August 17, 2011 by Jeff Hurt There’s good news, and there’s bad news, on the horizon for meetings and events. Take a look at these statistics released from current research reports. 1. Meeting Spend Up; Satisfaction With That Spend Down Meeting spend was up 22% for 2010 as compared to 2009. Yet, 66% of respondents say that their number one concern … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , conferences, meeting industry trends, meeting professionals, Speaker Emerging Practices
The HIPPO In The Room: You Are Not Your Audience June 14, 2011 by Jeff Hurt Dear Conference Organizer: You are not your audience. You are not your customers. Yes, you have your own preferences, your own likes, your own tastes. But you are not planning that event for yourself. And what you like is probably far from what your audience likes. You have to get out of your own mind. … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , conference tips, meeting planner, meeting planning basics, meeting planning best practices, speaker, Speaker Emerging Practices
